Yemu still held onto a sliver of hope. Deep down, he kept telling himself that maybe—just maybe—he could find another Devil Fruit. That way, he wouldn't have to shamelessly steal the future that was meant to belong to Enel.
Enel glanced at Yemu's conflicted, tortured expression, confused by the sudden change in his behavior. After a moment of thought, he replied,
"No, that's the only one."
"Don't be so quick to answer. Think carefully—it doesn't have to be exactly like this one. Anything with strange patterns, something unusual, that's enough."
Yemu pointed at the Devil Fruit he was still gripping tightly.
Enel tilted his head, pressing a finger to his forehead as he thought. After a moment, he slowly said,
"Now that you mention it… there might be one. But it didn't look like this. The pattern looked more like flames—and it was red."
"Seriously?"
Flame patterns, red skin—could it be the Mera Mera no Mi?
The moment Enel said that, Yemu's eyes lit up. His whole body trembled with excitement, as if he'd just taken a shot of pure energy. He immediately lunged to Enel's side.
"Come on... take me there... now!"
Enel was startled by the sudden outburst. While he didn't quite understand why Yemu was so eager, that wasn't what bothered him. What he struggled with was whether or not he should actually take Yemu to where he'd found that fruit.
The hunters should be returning to the village around this time. If they caught him sneaking out again, he'd definitely get a beating. And the place where he found that fruit... it was dangerous.
But then he felt Yemu's arm around his shoulder—that sense of acceptance, something Enel had never felt from anyone before.
In that moment, all his hesitation vanished.
"Alright, follow me!"
...
Somewhere in a remote valley of Upper Yard, a hidden spot nestled between towering rocks and a small trickling stream.
Enel and Yemu crouched there quietly, eyes on the Skypiea guards flying through the Sea Clouds above.
"Hey, Enel... are you really from Skypiea?"
Yemu took the chance to ask while they were hiding. It was something that had always bugged him when watching the anime.
"I don't know."
Enel's voice dimmed, his expression turning somber.
"But I've lived here on Skypiea for as long as I can remember."
"Oh. It's just… you don't have wings. But those guards do, so I was curious."
Yemu shifted back into the shade of a tree.
Enel's face darkened immediately. That struck a nerve. He had endured years of discrimination and abuse on Skypiea just because he didn't have wings.
And Yemu had expected that reaction.
He asked on purpose—he wanted to stir that resentment Enel held toward Skypiea.
So, he kept going, feigning nonchalance.
"Who knows? Maybe you're from the Blue Sea like me."
Enel flinched, eyes widening in disbelief as he stared at Yemu.
"Think about it—you and I don't have wings. And people from the Blue Sea don't either."
Seeing the flicker in Enel's eyes, Yemu pressed further.
"So? Don't you want to go back with me—to the Blue Sea?"
"To the Blue Sea…"
Enel's eyes widened even more.
Yemu's words had planted a seed—an idea of leaving Skypiea behind to see the world of humans who looked just like him.
But...
"How are we supposed to get back?"
"Hehe, I have no idea either."
After all, Skypiea floated tens of thousands of meters above the Blue Sea.
Yemu scratched his head awkwardly. He didn't have a clue. But he couldn't let the spark he'd just ignited in Enel about going to the Blue Sea burn out, so he added, "Even if I don't know how right now, I'm never giving up on returning to the Blue Sea. That place... that's my true home."
He turned to look at Enel, who seemed deep in thought, clearly torn.
"And besides, I've got you. If it were just me, sure, maybe I couldn't do it. But with your help? It's totally possible."
"Me...?"
Enel pointed at himself.
"What could I even do to help?"
"Not much now, maybe. But someday... who knows? For now, just take me to the place where you found that fruit."
Yemu still couldn't push past his own greed. He didn't have the guts to tell Enel the truth about the Devil Fruit—not yet.
"Alright."
Enel nodded, still clearly confused, not understanding what Yemu was getting at.
Luckily, just then, they both glanced up and saw that the Divine Soldiers had flown off. They quickly slipped away from their hiding spot.
Yemu followed Enel down a winding path. They ran into Skypiean patrols several times, but thanks to their small size, they managed to avoid detection.
It was clear this wasn't Enel's first time sneaking around here—he moved confidently, never missing a step, and the route stayed safe.
After more than an hour of walking, Enel finally led Yemu to a place that looked like ancient ruins. Crumbling structures littered the area, relics of a long-lost civilization.
Yemu stared at the scene, a thought flashing through his mind.
"This must be Shandora, from the story…"
"Hey! Hurry up!"
Enel shouted back at him. He was clearly on edge.
"Oh—right!"
Yemu snapped out of it and jogged to catch up.
They wove through the broken ruins until Enel brought him to a structure half-buried in Sea Clouds. There, he stopped.
"This is it," Enel said, eyes gleaming.
"Here?"
Yemu looked around. There was nothing but shattered stone and moss-covered rubble.
Enel noticed Yemu's puzzled expression and grinned proudly.
"I worked hard to find this place. Come on—I'll show you."
He stepped into the Sea Clouds. The water wasn't deep, barely reaching his knees. Yemu watched as Enel began feeling around, groping through the cloud-sea like he was searching for buried treasure.
A moment later, excitement flashed across Enel's face.
"Found it! It's here!"
Yemu watched as he started heaving at something in the water, his face turning red from the effort.
Guessing what it might be, Yemu stepped in and joined him.
"Let's do it together."
Following Enel's hands into the cloud cover, Yemu's fingers brushed against something solid—a huge stone slab.
"Alright, let's push together. We can move it."
"Yeah."
Enel gave Yemu a quick look, then nodded silently.
They braced themselves and pushed. The stone shifted slightly, revealing a thin crack—and Yemu immediately felt a strong suction pulling at him like a vortex.
"Push harder!" Enel yelled.
"I found the fruit right under here!"
The moment those words hit his ears, Yemu's vision blurred with anticipation. It felt like the Devil Fruit was already calling to him.
He gave everything he had.
With a final roar, the stone shifted—and instantly, a powerful whirlpool surged upward, sucking both of them into a pitch-black hole below.